Politics + Government
What Biden should say and do about the classified documents issue
When crooning about love, The Everly Brothers (under 50, it’s Google time again) reminded us that, “She always breaks my heart in two. It happens every time.” With apologies to Phil and Don, when it comes to crisis management, we could write our own song about those in power, “They always screw it up, they […]
Ending remote work is no way to fix state government workforce vacancy problem, AFSCME warns
Gov. Joe Lombardo’s executive order instructing state agencies to return to in-person offices by July 1 is receiving pushback from at least one union representing those public workers. Lombardo in his first week in office issued an executive order directing the state workforce to return “to pre-pandemic, normal and customary office conditions” by July 1. […]
U.S. House GOP would make it easier for feds to give public lands away to states
U.S. House Republicans included in the new rules for the chamber they passed this month a provision meant to make it easier for Congress to give away public lands. The provision is a fairly technical piece of the 55-page rules package. It affects internal House accounting and requires that anytime Congress were to give any federal […]
Animals should be treated with care, not cruelty
In recent years, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has been under fire for its wasteful, unproductive, and cruel experiments on dogs. Most recently, we exposed that for 75 years, the NIH has spent tens of millions of tax dollars to fund a dog colony that breeds up to 150 puppies a year, including beagles, […]
How the distortion of Martin Luther King Jr.‘s words enables more, not less, racial division
U.S. Rep. Chip Roy of Texas is just the latest conservative lawmaker to misuse the words of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. to judge a person on character and not race. In the protracted battle to elect Rep. Kevin McCarthy as speaker of the House, Roy, a Republican, nominated a Black man, Byron Donalds, […]
DOE offers contentious NV lithium mine $700 million loan
Citing a need to secure a domestic supply of lithium for electric car batteries, the Biden Administration has pledged $700 million for a planned lithium mine on the habitat of an endangered Nevada wildflower. On Friday, the U.S. Department of Energy announced it agreed to provide the attractive financing to Australian developer Ioneer Inc. under […]
U.S. to hit debt limit much sooner than expected, thrusting Congress into showdown
WASHINGTON — The U.S. government will hit its borrowing limit next week, forcing the new, divided Congress into negotiations over the debt limit much sooner than expected, though a potential date for the nation to default isn’t expected until this summer. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen wrote to Congress on Friday afternoon, telling leaders the United […]
Cardinal Amodei? NV Republican may be tapped for appropriations subcommittee chair
Update: Amodei’s appointment to chair the legislative branch subcommittee was made official January 16. Nevada’s Rep. Mark Amodei is expected to be recommended as chair of the legislative branch subcommittee of the powerful House Appropriations Committee, according to Politico. House Appropriations Committee Chair Kay Granger (R-Texas) is expected to finalize and submit recommendations for 12 […]
Nevada Legislature earns ‘A’ for election reforms, but path forward less clear
A new report praises the Nevada State Legislature for expanding voter access and improving its election system, saying that in 2021 the state “managed to pass nearly every pro-voter improvement it could have.” The Institute for Responsive Government in a report released Wednesday analyzed legislative efforts over the past two years to determine which states […]
Lombardo campaigned on no more shutdowns. He better tell that to House Republicans.
Congress kept Nevada – and its state budget – afloat during Steve Sisolak’s administration. It may sink Nevada during Joe Lombardo’s. Long story short: If House Republicans refuse to approve legislation allowing the U.S. government to pay its bills, the economy could crash and burn. Long story longer: During his unconditional surrender to his party’s […]
Lombardo’s pick for Gaming Control Board chair has a beef with state’s biggest union
Former Ultimate Fighting Championship executive Kirk Hendrick is Gov. Joe Lombardo’s choice to serve as the next chair of the Nevada Gaming Control Board. Lombardo named Hendrick to the board on Tuesday. He’s expected to replace Brittnie Watkins, who has served as chair since former chair Brin Gibson stepped down last year. “With his sharp […]
House Republicans back rules plan without disclosing deals made with hard-right members
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House adopted rules for the 118th Congress on Monday, though several of the concessions Speaker Kevin McCarthy granted to far right members of the Republican Party to secure the gavel weren’t included in the document, or publicly circulated ahead of the vote. The 55-page rules package the House voted nearly party-line 220-213 to adopt sets […]